News and Posts

The IRS recently released guidance providing the 2024 inflation-adjusted amounts for Health Savings Accounts (HSAs). HSA fundamentals An HSA is a trust created or organized exclusively for the purpose of paying the “qualified medical expenses” of an “account beneficiary.” An HSA can only be established for the benefit of an “eligible individual” who is covered under a “high-deductible health plan.” In addition, a participant can’t [...]

Timely financial information is critical to a successful business or nonprofit organization. In today’s dynamic marketplace, you may need to act fast to ward off potential threats and risks — and jump on new opportunities. But if you wait until your financial statements are released to react, you’ll likely miss out. Flash reports can provide real-time data that can help management respond to changing conditions. [...]

“Thousands of people have lost millions of dollars and their personal information to tax scams,” according to the IRS. The scams may come in through email, text messages, telephone calls or regular mail. Criminals regularly target both individuals and businesses and often prey on the elderly. Important: The IRS will never contact you by email, text or social media channels about a tax bill or [...]

While the value of virtual currency continues to fluctuate, the IRS’s interest in it has only increased. In 2021, for example, the agency launched Operation Hidden Treasure to root out taxpayers who don’t report income from cryptocurrency transactions on their federal income tax returns. Moreover, the Inflation Reduction Act, enacted in 2022, allocated $80 billion to the IRS, with much of it designated for enforcement activities. However, [...]

It’s common for high-growth and seasonal businesses to have occasional shortfalls in their checking accounts. The reason relates to the cash conversion cycle — that is, it takes time to collect on customer invoices. In the meantime, of course, employees and suppliers want to get paid. The “cash gap” is currently getting wider for many companies. A recent study by CFO / The Hackett Group shows that [...]

Many businesses use independent contractors to help keep their costs down — especially in these times of staff shortages and inflationary pressures. If you’re among them, be careful that these workers are properly classified for federal tax purposes. If the IRS reclassifies them as employees, it can be an expensive mistake. The question of whether a worker is an independent contractor or an employee for [...]

If your not-for-profit sets performance goals — and most organizations should — then you need benchmarks to measure your performance. Staffers and your board may not enthusiastically embrace benchmarking at first. But if you can show its value and make the process easy, you should be able to get everyone on board. Mission-focused work Employees and board members may think benchmarking is more appropriate for [...]

The IRS recently released its audit statistics for the 2022 fiscal year and fewer taxpayers had their returns examined as compared with prior years. But even though a small percentage of returns are being chosen for audits these days, that will be little consolation if yours is one of them. Recent statistics Overall, just 0.49% of individual tax returns were audited in 2022. However, as [...]

Do your not-for-profit’s accounting processes work perfectly — with no errors, delays or other inefficiencies? If yours is like most organizations, probably not. But if your nonprofit is committed to improvement, you have an edge over those that accept the status quo. Whether it’s building budgets, paying invoices or preparing financial statements, there’s almost always something that can work better, faster and less expensively. Prioritize certain [...]

When one spouse in a married couple is not earning compensation, the couple may not be able to save as much as they need for a comfortable retirement. In general, an IRA contribution is allowed only if a taxpayer earns compensation. However, there’s an exception involving a “spousal” IRA. It allows contributions to be made for a spouse who is out of work or who [...]

With a financial crisis averted, let’s take a look at the highlights of the Fiscal Responsibility Act.

A few years ago, the popular and well-compensated executive director of a west coast youth soccer league was accused of fraud. After scrutinizing the club’s books, the league’s board of directors couldn’t account for $80,000. Criminal charges were eventually dropped, but many similar cases have concluded in embezzlement findings and significant losses. According to The Washington Post, youth sports has become a $19 billion proposition. Unfortunately, many [...]

Accrual-basis financial statements are considered by many to be the gold standard in financial reporting. But with the increasing cost and complexity of today’s accounting rules — in particular, the updated lease guidance that went into effect last year — some private companies are seeking a simpler alternative to U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). The solution for some is to switch from accrual to [...]

Using the cash basis of accounting may make sense for your not-for-profit organization — at least at this stage. Many smaller nonprofits use the cash basis to prepare their financial statements because it’s generally quick, easy and intuitive and can alert them to current cash flow challenges. However, there’s a potential problem with cash basis accounting: It can require year-end adjustments. Let’s look at the issue. [...]